Improvement in wood-bending machines



UNITED STATES PATENT Ormea. A

JOHN FISHBAUGH, OF TIFFIN, OHIO.

IMPROVEMENT IN yWOOD-BENDING MACHINES.4

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 54,316, dated May l, 1866.

To all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN FISHBAUGH, of Tiffin, in the county'of Seneca and State of Ohio, have invented a new and Improved Machine for Bending Wood 5 and Ido hereby de clare that the following is afull, clear, and eX- act description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making apart of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a front elevation of my improved machine, showing the mode of bending a piece of wood. Fig. 2 is a view showing a piece of wood under compression previously to bending it on the pattern-block. Fig. 3 shows a piece of wood bent about the pattern and confined by a strap. Fig. 4 is a top view of Fig. 3. Figs. 5 and 6 show the construction of the clamping-blocks.

Similar letters of reference indicate lcorresponding parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to an improvement in bending wood for various purposes, but more particularly for the fellies of wheels. It has been found that in bending wood, particularly thick pieces, by machinery hitherto constructed for this purpose the outside surface, or that which takes the greatest curve, will have its fibers very much distended7 and in many instances even torn asunder, and if wormholes, knots, or other imperfections occur in the piece which is being bent it is often so much injured as to be useless after the opera tion. 1

The main object of myinvention is to remedy this evil by previously bending or springing the piece of wood in an opposite direction to that which it is required to finally bend it, at the same time compressing said piece, so that when it is bent about a pattern the distention of the bers of its surface of greatest diameter will not impair or be sufficient to injure the strength or cause a separation thereof, as

' will be hereinafter described.

Another object of my invention is to construct the bending machinery and the pattern about which the wood is bent in such manner that the latter will be distended during the To enable others skilled in the art to understand my invention, I will describeits construction and operation.

In the accompanying drawings, A represents a strong piece of timber, which forms the sill of the machine, and B B are vertical standards, which are framed into the sill A, and which are strongly braced by means ot' hori- Zontal cross-beams and two curved braces, B2 B2, which latter serve as guides for the compressing-blocks O G, hereinafter to be described.

The upper part of the frame is made somepart, for the purpose of affording end bearings for a windlass, a, and two friction-rollers, b b. rIhe windlass a carries on one end a large spurwheel, D, which is indicated in red, and which engages with the teeth of a pinion, D', also indicated in red. A crank not shown) is applied to the short shaft c of the pinion D', by means of which the windlass a can be rotated.

Other contrivances may be employed for rotating said windlass; but I prefer the two wheels and crank which I have just described.

E represents a vertical screw with radial arms projecting from its upper end. This screw, at an intermediate point between the upright posts B B, has its bearings in the cross-bars B B of these posts. Its lower end is tapped through a vertically-sliding follower, G, which is suitably guided by said posts, and which has a wedge, G', formed on or applied to its front surface, as shown in Fig. l, the sides of which taper downward. By turning the screw E the follower may be raised or forcibly depressed.

The ends of the sill A have recesses formed in them for receiving the two compressingblocks C G, so that when these blocks lie in their recesses their surfaces e e will be flush with the upper surfaces of the sill, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. These blocks are each provided with a hooked screw, g, the threaded end of which passes out through one end of its block and receives the nut g', by turning which the screws can be moved outward. The hooked screw g of each block O moves in a recess, h, below the surface e ofthe block, and the hook thereof may be moved beneath the enlarged head of this block. These blocks, which are constructed alike, should be propwhat wider in one direction than the lower erly strapped and strengthened to resist the strain to which` they are subjected, and they should be furnished with loops C" on their back surfaces for receiving the curved guides B2 B2. These blocks are also provided with staples on the upper sides of their enlarged ends, by means. of which chains K K are con nected to them, which chains are also con-A nected to the windlass a, as shown in Fig. l..

As my machine is intended more particularly for the bending of fellies for wheels, I will describe those parts which I employ for this purpose.

J is a semicircular patternblock, which is centrally divided and its twol partsconnected together by an outer strap.,d, and a spring, d', the action of which latter is to keep the two parts of the pattern closed, as shown in Fig. 3. Thefasteningat d? is intended merely to prevent the two parts ofthepattern from being drawn too far apart. The upper edge of this; pattern is cut out, as shown at I, to receive the lower end of-the wedge G onthe follower G, and to allow this wedge to force the two 4 parts of the pattern apart, as shown in Figul, in the act of screwing down the follower G Gr, for the` purpose of forcing the pattern down upon the central portion of the bowed stripof wood until said` central portion ot'` the wood bears upon. the central portion of the sill A.

F represents a metal strap which is sufficiently thin to bend freely, and which has-enlargements j j formed on itsends, asshown in Figs. 2and 6. These enlargements jj areformedon the lower side ot' said strip,andare received by the hooksv on the' ends of the screws gg, so` that when the strip lies: upon the sill Aas.shown in Fig. 2, andA thescrewnuts. g. g are tightened, the stripF willl be a` means. of connecting the blocks C C together: and enable the attendant. to move both blocks; toward each other., rIlhe strip of wood to be bent isA properly steamed, andintroducedbetween` the blocks C O,its ends abuttingagainst; the verticalsnrfaces of the enlarged; headsot' these blocks, as shown in Fig. `2. Now, upon turning the screwsggso asto move the blocks. toward each otherthe stri p` of wood will sprin up. in the center, as indicated in red, Fig. 2,` andy be retained. in this condition.,

The pattern J is now adjusted uponthe stripof' wood and the follower Gr brought, down forcibly upon it, the wedge G spreading, it;

apart, as. shown` in Fig. I.A At this stagefof;

t ments formed.cuits,n ends, and therecessed sill the` operation the windlass a, isl rotated. and the, chains Klwound uponit,.which draws; up both blocks- C' G simultaneously, and. with. them-.the strip` of wood and the.strapF. When drawn up tothe highest point the blocks as- Snmeaverticalposition. (ShowninFigLy Ihefv two endsiofthestrip F are.4 now connectedfto-` gether bymeans of, a. strap, n,.(shown in Figs.

3f and 4,), and the follower Gr elevated so as1toallowtheV pattern J to be removed fromtheV machine aswell asfrom -the strip ot' bentwood t and its strap F. The strip of metal Fserves gether at the commencement ot' the operation 1 of bending.

I am aware that attempts have been made to shorten bars or strips of wood previously to the-operation of bending the bars by coni trivances which were applied so as to exert a force directly in a line with the bars, which latter were clamped lirmly upon a flat surface previously to applying such force, for

the purpose of preventing these` bars from springing or bowing.

I am alsor aware that the end blocks against which the ends ot' the stripV of timber heilig bent abut have been made to oscillate,l and also to follow up the strip of` wood during,` the roperation of bending the stri-p into acurved "form,v as, shown in Adam Luckhauptsl patent of October 1, 1861.

- I doA not. therefore claim shrinking or shortening the fibers of wood previously to bending it, nordoI claim oscillating and-.sliding l endblocks which are acted upon bythe dey vices whichbendv the strip.1 offtimber around its pattern, but desire to. confine my invention to `a method,substantially as described, of sho-rtlening or shrinking` all the fibers of a bar of wood during the act of bending such-bar about Aa4 pattern, thus enabling me to` employ` the same contrivances to shorten, the bar that. are employed for bending it and for clamping it and ther pattern upon. the sill A.`

Having thus described my invention,.what I.v claim. as new, and desire to secure by Let- 1. Shrinking orshortening all the fibers of abat', of wood by meansot the deviceswfhich are used for clamping the pattern` and wood upon the sill A and the devicesfused for bending, such bar about its pattern, substantially such as described.`

2.` The method,substantially its-described of bending wood into curved forms, to wit, by

Y -rst. bowing or arching it and'then bending it Iabout-the pattern in aconverse direction to 'thatlin whiclritwas rstfbentorbowed, substantially asset forth.

3. The construction and; arrangementA of. the shouldered. blocks C G, hooked. screws. g g, nuts` g( g/,connecting-strip F, having; enlarge- A,V all used together substantially.,asdescribed. 4. So constru'cftin'g.,the` patternandthefolf lower. and. combining, the same that the eX- pansion of the pattern is`- effected by the det scent of the follower GfV and itscontraction in- :sured by the ascent of the follower, substantiallyr as described.

JOHN FISHBAUGH. Witnesses:

J osIAH; Gonnnfrfr, Jarras .PILL/Ins. 

